Seeking information about preconceived notions of the educational needs of children who are gifted, we asked 285 undergraduates in prerequisite classes for teacher education to complete questionnaires. Topics addressed included the need for special services for children who are gifted, perceptions of forms of service delivery in elementary schools, and egalitarian versus elitist issues in gifted education. Preferences among our respondents fell in favor of services carried out in general...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Misconceptions, Educational Needs, Elementary School Students, Academically Gifted,...
The present study sought to examine the perceptions of giftedness and identification procedures held by experienced teachers of gifted minority students. Twenty-seven 4th-grade teachers of gifted students in an urban school system with a high representation of minority and economically disadvantaged students were surveyed. Results indicated that experienced teachers still held a narrow conception of giftedness and were not aware of how culture and environmental factors may influence the...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Economically Disadvantaged, Minority Group Children, Family Problems, Urban Schools,...
Childhood obesity has reached epidemic proportions in the U.S. University health and physical education programs have a unique opportunity to assist in childhood obesity prevention through service-learning programs. However, prior to the implementation of service-learning curricula, it is imperative to gain insight in the unique needs of the selected community. The purpose of this study was to understand a service-learning community through exploring parent, teacher, and student perceptions...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Prevention, Physical Education, Health Education, Focus Groups, Family Involvement,...
This paper presents an analysis of results from an evaluation of The Centers for Quality Teaching and Learning, a professional development program placing technology in the context of student-centered instructional practices. This analysis focuses on the relationship between the professional development and teachers' use of technology in their classroom and their general instructional practices. The results from this study indicate teachers increased their use of technology in ways viewed as...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Teaching Methods, Constructivism (Learning), Professional Development, Student...
The purpose of this study is to critically examine teachers' and their students' views about technology integration in schools focusing on the following questions: (1) What are students' perceptions about technology integration in schools?; (2) What are teachers' views about using technology in teaching and learning?; and (3) What do teachers say about the "oversold, underused" phenomenon of technology in schools? Data were collected from 15 secondary mathematics and science teachers...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Student Attitudes, Educational Technology, Technology Integration, Science Teachers,...
This paper investigates the questions and considerations that should be discussed by administrators, faculty, and support staff when designing, developing and offering a hybrid (part online, part face-to-face) degree program. Using two Web questionnaires, data were gathered from nine instructors and approximately 450 students to evaluate student and instructor perceptions and opinions of hybrid instruction and activities. In comparison to prior research, the results of this study offer larger...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Educational Technology, Distance Education, Program Development, Curriculum...
Many schools are initiating projects that place laptop computers into the hands of each student and teacher in the school. These projects entail a great deal of planning and investment by all involved. The teachers in these schools are faced with significant challenges as they prepare for teaching in classrooms where every student has a computer. Using the Concerns-Based Adoption Model of change, this study investigated the concerns of teachers in the early stages of a one-to-one laptop...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Educational Environment, Computers, Adoption (Ideas), Teacher Attitudes, Educational...
This paper reports on an exploratory, longitudinal study that analyzes and interprets the evolution of teachers' beliefs regarding learning, teaching, and technology, and their instructional practices, in the context of integrating technology-based information-rich tasks in six 4th-6th grade classrooms. The study used multiple research tools, interviews, questionnaires and observations, focusing on both teachers' beliefs and classroom practices. The findings reveal that following multi-year...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Teaching Methods, Research Tools, Classrooms, Teacher Attitudes, Interviews,...
The computer-supported Project Work classroom learning environment discussed in this paper represents a paradigm shift from teacher-centered to student-centered teaching and learning in Singapore schools. Besides the face-to-face weekly lessons in existing Project Work classrooms, the students engaged in computer-supported online forum discussions. Two hundred and sixty students and 26 teachers from seven high schools participated in this study. Their perceptions of this new learning...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Foreign Countries, Educational Environment, Student Attitudes, Test Validity, Item...
This study examined activities used during elementary school math and reading instruction. Teachers reported their use of cooperative, competitive, and individual activities in math and reading, their subjective evaluations of teaching each subject, and their level of focus on promoting students' interests. Analyses indicated that teachers used more competitive activities in math than reading. Additionally, individual math activities increased across grades whereas individual reading activities...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Teaching Methods, Reading Instruction, Learning Activities, Class Activities,...
Seven middle-level schools in a large suburban district created an open enrollment system for advanced English and science courses. The advanced courses provided students with an opportunity to learn through the use of primary sources, high-level literature, and a variety of projects. A vertical teaming process in each middle-high school attendance area was instrumental in promoting teacher collaboration and acceptance of a Pre-AP philosophy intended to expand student access to advanced...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Teacher Collaboration, Teacher Attitudes, Open Enrollment, Attendance, Advanced...
The racial, ethnic, linguistic, and economic diversity within urban areas necessitates the creation of scholastic environments that are responsive to the varying academic and social needs of the student population. This qualitative study investigates ways in which teacher and administrator behavior and the school environment contribute to the successes or frustrations of minority students in AP and IB courses. Classroom observations and interviews with 9 administrators, 4 counselors, 43...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Advanced Placement Programs, Educational Environment, Teacher Behavior, Administrator...
Social relations are often seen as transactions between individuals. The dynamic teacher, accordingly, is one who gives energy and knowledge to students. Because this understanding fails to appreciate the relational forces at work in the lively classroom, it produces unhealthy attitudes toward education. Teachers who try to live up to it will not only burn out, they will distort their students' educational development. The vitality of the classroom comes from an energy that is created between...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Teacher Student Relationship, Phenomenology, Classroom Communication, Classroom...
In keeping with repeated calls to investigate high early career turnover within the teaching profession, the present study investigated the hypothesis that a significant positive association between burnout and turnover intention would be observed in teachers at the beginning of their careers. A sample of 112 Australian teachers working in their first or second academic year was surveyed in 2004. Respondents were administered the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI: Maslach, Jackson & Leiter...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Teaching (Occupation), Beginning Teachers, Teacher Burnout, Foreign Countries, Labor...
This study is aimed at assessing the state of Philippine secondary school physics education using data from a nationwide survey of 464 schools and 767 physics teachers and at identifying challenges for substantive improvements. Teacher-related indicators revealed academic qualification deficiency, low continuing professional involvements, substantial physics teaching experience, and good licensure status. Academic environment indices revealed that the number of physics classes per teacher is...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Foreign Countries, Teacher Education, Instructional Materials, Educational...
This paper reports the use of several quantitative analytic methods, including Rasch analysis, to re-examine teacher responses to questionnaire items probing opinions related to the compulsory numeracy tests conducted in Years 3, 5, and 7 in Queensland, Australia. Nisbet and Grimbeek (2004) previously reported an interpretable and statistically acceptable 6-factor exploratory factor solution. The present paper improved on this outcome by utilising Rasch analysis to identify items with orderly...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Foreign Countries, Numeracy, Item Analysis, Factor Analysis, Factor Structure,...
Teacher quality has become a national policy concern in the US, especially in mathematics. This study provides insights into the conceptualisation of high quality mathematics teaching from the perspective of approximately 750 students in grades nine through twelve. Results from Rasch analysis yield information about the quality of the "Mathematics Quality Survey" constructed for this study and the hierarchy of items representing varying levels of quality as perceived by the students....
Topics: ERIC Archive, Mathematics Instruction, Teacher Effectiveness, Rating Scales, Student Attitudes,...
This study seeks to determine the state of online course development and faculty attitudes toward online instruction within technical teacher education programs in the United States. This study shows that a majority of research participants reported that less than 25% of coursework in their departments was offered fully online or Web-enhanced. This indicates a relatively low usage of online coursework in technical teacher education programs. One may conclude, therefore, that technical teacher...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Technology Integration, Management Systems, Teacher Education Programs, Preservice...
The National Association of Industrial and Technical Teacher Educators (NAITTE) will celebrate its 69th birthday this year. In keeping with this progression of years, the products and services of the organization are advancing as well: the "Journal of Industrial Teacher Education (JITE)" will turn 43, the Industrial Teacher Education Directory (ITE Directory) will turn 49, and the News and Views Newsletter will turn 26. Such a record speaks to the durability and quality of the...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Industrial Education, Teacher Educators, Technical Education, Higher Education,...
The purpose of this study was to examine teachers' perceptions concerning the modular technology approach to teaching technology education in Georgia. The study addressed the following basic research question: What do teachers in Georgia perceive to be the main advantages and drawbacks to teaching technology education in a modular environment compared to a conventional environment? This study found that Georgia technology teachers who were familiar with teaching in modular laboratories tended...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Laboratories, Technology Education, Teacher Attitudes, Educational Facilities,...
It is widely acknowledged that what teachers believe influences their teaching, yet the focus of much professional learning remains on influencing the specific practices and tools that teachers employ in their classrooms. In this article, it is argued that a greater and more explicit focus on teachers' beliefs would be beneficial. To this end, an overview of aspects of the understandings of the nature of beliefs is presented followed by findings from a recent study that examined mathematics...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Mathematics Teachers, Mathematics Instruction, Teacher Attitudes, Foreign Countries,...
The results of a survey on teachers' perceptions regarding Florida's test-based accountability program raised serious doubts about whether testing has precipitated positive outcomes in upper-elementary students' learning. Nearly all of the 708 Florida upper-elementary teachers who completed the survey reported that testing had a negative effect or no effect on student learning in reading, writing, and mathematics. Factors associated with students' decrease in learning are discussed and...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Testing, Accountability, Teacher Surveys, Teacher Attitudes, Outcomes of Education,...
Virtual schooling, in which K-12 courses and activities are offered mostly or completely through digital communication technologies, has become firmly established in K-12 education across the United States. The VS movement continues to expand at a rapid rate, especially at the high school level. The continuing success of VS efforts will require K-12 teachers, administrators, and support staff at host schools to collaborate effectively with VS providers. Virtual schooling requires substantial...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Teacher Role, Teacher Attitudes, Online Courses, Web Based Instruction, Computer Uses...
In the book, "1-to-1 Learning: Laptop Programs That Work," author Pamela Livingston begins with an important point for those who are considering a laptop program for the first time: Newcomers are fortunate to be able to learn from the educators who have started down the 1-to-1 road before them. This proved to be true for two neighboring school districts in Oregon (Eugene School District 4J and Springfield School District) that took the time to survey what other schools had been doing....
Topics: ERIC Archive, Computer Uses in Education, Technology Integration, School Districts, Program...
In this article, the authors explore the effects of Virginia's high stakes history tests on beginning teachers' "notions of historical thinking," and briefly consider the literature on historical thinking, high-stakes testing, and beginning teachers. Data sources for this study included interviews, observations, and classroom documents of seven beginning high school history teachers who work in the high-stakes testing environment of Virginia. The interviews and observations revealed...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Testing, High Stakes Tests, Critical Thinking, Beginning Teachers, History...
Concerns about the importance of variation in statistics education and a lack of research in this topic led to a preliminary study which explored pre-service teachers' ideas in this area. The teachers completed a written questionnaire about variation in sampling and distribution contexts. Responses were categorised in relation to a framework that identified levels of statistical thinking. The results suggest that while many of the students appeared to acknowledge variation, they were not able...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Sampling, Statistics, Misconceptions, Questionnaires, Preservice Teachers,...
This study explores how a project-based approach, based on gifted education pedagogy, was implemented in a public school program where the majority of students were from low-income families. The 2 first-grade teachers in this study were able to change their teaching practices to include more strategies commonly found in gifted programs such as brainstorming, creating surveys, and collecting data. The teachers also indicated a greater comfort level with a child-centered and project-based...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Academically Gifted, Group Activities, Educational Change, Low Income Groups,...
The focus of this study was art therapy students' and professionals' perceptions of their preparedness to understand and deal with technology as an art media and work tool within the practice of art therapy. To study the need for training in technology, surveys were sent to 177 current art therapy students and practicing art therapists resulting in a 32.2% return rate. The survey targeted American Art Therapy Association (AATA) members who were either current students or practicing art...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Art Therapy, Professional Training, Computer Literacy, Attitude Measures, College...
During the analysis of a survey of art therapy educators in 2001 (St. John, Kaiser, & Ball, 2004), issues of importance to art therapy and art therapy research education emerged. As a follow-up, the authors interviewed educators attending the 2002 Annual Conference of the American Art Therapy Association (AATA) to gain an understanding of their perspectives in three areas: emphasis on teaching qualitative and quantitative approaches, expected research competencies of graduates, and...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Statistical Analysis, Qualitative Research, Art Therapy, Educational Research,...
This article studies the dilemma between professionalization and professionalism in the development of teaching into a bureaucratic organization in Hong Kong. Professionalization and bureaucratization are simultaneous processes. Teaching as an occupation has grown from a state of idiosyncrasy to a profession with defined boundaries. However, achieving system efficiency and technical rationality, both features of bureaucracy, could undermine or suppress teachers' individual autonomy. Thus,...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Foreign Countries, Personal Autonomy, Teacher Attitudes, Professional Autonomy,...
The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship between different levels of organizational commitment (compliance, identification, internalization) of teachers and their different conflict management strategies (compromising, problem solving, forcing, yielding, avoiding). Based on a questionnaire survey of 418 teachers, this study indicated that male teachers are more likely to experience commitment based on compliance, and are more likely to avoid conflicts than female teachers....
Topics: ERIC Archive, Problem Solving, Conflict, Conflict Resolution, Predictor Variables, Teacher...
This study looks into issues pertaining to the policy of including native English-speaking teachers (NESTs) in elementary schools in Taiwan, i.e., NEST programs, from the perspective of the teachers involved. Through data gathered from interviews and classroom observations, this qualitative study examines the necessity of NEST programs and reveals the challenges facing NESTs and local English teachers as they negotiate the process of working together. It shows that while a NEST program is not a...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Foreign Countries, Second Language Instruction, Native Speakers, Elementary Schools,...
Knowing how teachers in China understand excellence in teaching is an important precursor to developing teaching standards. This study explores the conceptions of excellent teaching held by 20 middle school teachers in the north of China. A phenomenographic approach with grounded theory was used to interpret teachers' descriptions of a time when they delivered excellent teaching. Four main themes were found: (1) caring for students, (2) guiding students' all-round development, (3) connecting...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Foreign Countries, Middle Schools, Middle School Teachers, Teacher Effectiveness,...
Researchers have suggested that transformational leadership is an important aspect of effective schools; however, whether the effects vary across related studies and the robustness of the overall effect size remain unclear. A meta-analysis technique was used to synthesize the results of 28 independent studies and to investigate the overall relationship between transformational school leadership and three measures of school outcomes. The study found that, in terms of the mean effect sizes,...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Foreign Countries, Instructional Leadership, School Effectiveness, Job Satisfaction,...
This study focuses on a group of practitioners from a school district that adopted reform-oriented curriculum materials but later rejected them, partially due to the inclusion of alternative algorithms in the materials. Metaphors implicit in a conversation among the group were analysed to illuminate their perspectives on instructional issues surrounding alternative algorithms. Several possible sources of resistance to folding alternative algorithms into instruction were found, including the...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Mathematics, Teaching Methods, Mathematics Education, Computation, Mathematics...
This study explores the following question: How do teacher candidates reflect on their learning about issues of diversity? As a novice teacher educator teaching a foundations course that foregrounds issues of diversity, power, and opportunity in schools and other social institutions, the author of this study set out to analyze how the students from her course who are pursuing teacher certification reflect upon their learning about diversity after completing this course. In this paper, she...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Preservice Teacher Education, Teacher Educators, Teacher Certification, Preservice...
The first half of this article reviews literature on some of the unmet needs of gay and lesbian students in schools and highlights educators' attitudes and beliefs toward individuals with differing sexual identities. Although the majority of literature reviewed in this article does not portray educators as being supportive of gay and lesbian needs, the author does not dismiss those teachers, educators, administrators, Gay Straight Alliance (GSA) groups, and allies across the country who educate...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Minority Groups, Homosexuality, Sexual Identity, Educational Environment, Student...
The effects of recent moves toward national testing regimes are being felt at the classroom level, where teachers feel compelled to "teach to the tests." Thus, they are now accountable in two ways: to students (and their understandings) and to the public and to the school boards (for improving overall student test scores). It is important to understand how teachers assess their students in response to these pressures. In this article, the authors report on findings from a year-long...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Accountability, Educational Practices, Case Studies, Student Evaluation, Teacher...
The purpose of this qualitative exploratory study was to investigate the perceived state of civics education as viewed by practicing teachers in three large high schools (each with a student enrollment of at least 2,200) in the midwestern and southeastern United States, in an effort to discover what teachers in different geographical regions deem as critical to this area of study. While the answers of teachers at the schools are naturally not meant to represent the entire American teaching...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Teacher Attitudes, High School Students, Geographic Regions, Knowledge Level, Student...
The teaching of statistics at the elementary and secondary level is a relatively new expansion of the curriculum. Considering the many challenges faced by teachers of statistics in higher education, there is a continuing need to evaluate and monitor teaching and learning at this level. The purpose of this study was to survey elementary and secondary teachers to determine their attitudes about statistics, their perceptions related to student attitudes and achievement, and their attitudes about...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Statistics, Teacher Attitudes, Elementary Secondary Education, Elementary School...
This article reports the findings of a university's pilot project documenting the impact of an intervention entitled Course (Re)design for Internationalization Workshop (CRIW) on faculty perspectives and their subsequent willingness to engage in internationalization of the curriculum. Two main theories, transformative learning (Mezirow, 1991) and faculty development (Ramsden, 2003) in the approach adopted for the CRIW (Saroyan & Amundsen, 2004) informed this study and its procedures. This...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Workshops, Intervention, Faculty Development, Educational Change, Transformative...
Reflecting on one's teaching practice is often an implicit goal for faculty development programs. Yet very little has been documented on how programs for diverse groups of university teachers actually engage faculty in such reflection. This paper examines how theoretical constructs of reflective practice were applied in the context of an 8-month "UBC Faculty Certificate Program on Teaching and Learning in Higher Education" (FCP). The "Teaching Perspectives Inventory" (TPI)...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Faculty Development, Inservice Teacher Education, Reflective Teaching, College...
This paper explores key gender differences in motivation from a quantitative perspective and presents findings from a qualitative study into boys' perceptions of motivating teachers and motivating pedagogy. Data collected from 3773 high school students suggest that girls score significantly higher than boys in their belief in the value of school, learning focus, planning, study management, and persistence while boys rate significantly higher in self-sabotage/self-handicapping. However, girls...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Student Motivation, Program Development, Academic Failure, Gender Differences, Males,...
This article revisits a phenomenological case study in which I used metaphor to explore, over a seven-year span, the blossoming and wilting of an early childhood teacher's career due to the complex interplay between a range of personal, relational and contextual influences (Sumsion 2002). Following Kamler (2001), I now bring a critical lens to my rereading of Sarah's metaphors as cultural texts that reflect the cultural storylines, positionings and practices that Sarah perceived were available...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Preservice Teacher Education, Teacher Persistence, Figurative Language, Faculty...
The aim of this study is to determine the student teachers' concerns about the teaching process including the teaching profession, teaching methods, planning, instruction, evaluation and classroom management. A total of 156 student teachers from five departments in the Gazi faculty of education participated in the study. A questionnaire including an open-ended item was applied in order to establish the nature of the student teachers' concerns. The responses from the student teachers to the...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Classroom Techniques, Student Teachers, Teaching (Occupation), Measures...
Over the past thirty years, numerous studies confirmed that new teachers do not have the requisite knowledge to understand the complex interrelationships among management, behavior, and academic tasks. An important missing piece in the literature is how the concerns of experienced teachers differ from those cited by beginning teachers. Based on previous research, this study compares beginning and experienced teachers' concerns with respect to managing classroom behavior, dealing with time...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Classroom Techniques, Student Behavior, Time Management, Teacher Attitudes, Beginning...
The notion of quality in undergraduate mathematics lectures is examined by using theoretical notions and research results from the literature and empirical data from a case study on lecturing on limits of functions. A systemic triangular model is found to catch critical quality aspects of a mathematics lecture, consisting of mathematical exposition, teacher immediacy, and general quality criteria for mathematics teaching. Mathematical exposition involves the dynamic interplay of mathematical...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Mathematics Instruction, Educational Quality, Lecture Method, Undergraduate Students,...
This study investigated teachers' attitudes towards proofs in the secondary school mathematics curriculum. The study was motivated by a desire to fill a gap existing in the literature in relation to teachers' attitudes towards proofs. Thirty-four secondary school mathematics teachers' responses to a Likert type questionnaire and interviews were summarised using the five themes of utility, positive attitudes, methods of proof, negative attitudes, and suitability of level of students to perform...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Secondary School Mathematics, Negative Attitudes, Foreign Countries, Mathematics...
In this article, the author states that teachers should look more carefully at their students and treat them as if they may someday become the future leaders of their nation and the world. Teachers need to seriously consider the magnitude of their good fortune and responsibility as teachers of those who will one day guard their nation's safety, grow their food supply, and save their planet. Teachers should consider very carefully what they teach and how they teach it. In addition to teaching...
Topics: ERIC Archive, World Problems, Personal Narratives, Teacher Attitudes, Leaders, Youth Leaders,...
The students in 21st-century public middle schools are increasingly diverse in terms of language proficiency, cultural and ethnic representation, and varied levels of poverty; and, yet, they are being educated in a political climate that encourages mainstreaming special education and gifted services in the regular classroom. Given this context, this study sought to examine 48 middle school content-area teachers' beliefs about teaching in diverse classrooms to determine how these beliefs...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Middle Schools, Middle School Teachers, Language Proficiency, Ethnicity, Teacher...